


something has to die to be reborn

by kibourn



Category: Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story
Genre: Angst, Canon Compliant, Hurt/Comfort, I am so sorry, Mild Blood, no beta we die like ryo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-08
Updated: 2021-03-08
Packaged: 2021-03-14 12:48:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,381
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29917143
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kibourn/pseuds/kibourn
Summary: Today was supposed to be a good day.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4





	something has to die to be reborn

**Author's Note:**

  * For [DragonLapis](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DragonLapis/gifts).



> I WROTE THIS IN ONE SESSION LET'S GOOOO
> 
> I haven't written much in terms of fanfics lately, but really wanted to write something after the whole Ryo dying situation in canon.. hopefully this is fine! also this is inspired by something DragonLapis wrote on their tumblr! (also I think I mentioned that I was writing something like this to them on twitter..?) Either way, hope you enjoy!

Shizuku woke up that morning in a better mood than usual. 

The sun's rays entered her bedroom through half-open curtains, the warmth just barely landing on her upper body. Shizuku burried herself deeper into her blankets, basking in the comfort the sun gave her. All she could ask for was to stay in that very moment just a little longer. 

But, she knew she had to get up. Perfect moments don't last forever, after all. 

_(if only they lasted a little bit longer)._

Shizuku grabbed her phone and turned it on, revealing the messages she'd received as well as the time. It seemed that she was awake before her alarm was set to go off, but she wasn't complaining. After entering her password, the messages that appeared consisted of good morning texts from Ayaka and Ikumi in the group chat they shared (after all, it was easier to plan to meet up this way), as well as a message about her work schedule from her father. There was also a message from Seika, asking if Shizuku wanted to meet up sometime during the weekend. Shizuku was quick to respond to her friends, but noticed that Ryo had yet to send anything in response. It was strange, but.. maybe she had just overslept? 

After responding to the messages she'd received, Shizuku turned off her phone and set it on her bed, getting up after. She grabbed a hair brush and quickly styled her hair, tossing the brush to the side when finished. Next, she threw on a sweater and a pair of jeans. She had to work that morning, so.. there was no need for anything too over the top, after all. Shizuku grabbed her work apron and quickly threw it on, putting her phone into one of the pockets before exiting her room. 

After a quick breakfast, it was time to get to work. But the work day couldn't go by any slower.

Most of the morning consisted of Shizuku standing idly while waiting for customers to come in. She didn't mind this, but she wasn't able to use her phone unless she was on break, so she was left quite bored. Occasionally a customer would come in, providing Shizuku with something to do for a few minutes. 

Eventually, her first break rolled around. 

Shizuku pulled her phone out from her apron pocket, turning it on. There were no new messages, which would be fine in any other situation, but Ryo still hadn't responded. Shizuku felt a sharp pang of worry, but tried to brush it off as best as possible. She quickly messaged the group chat to ask if anyone had heard from Ryo, before stuffing the phone back into her pocket. Shizuku made sure to set her phone to vibrate, just in case. 

Customers started to come into the café more frequently than earlier, but Shizuku felt uneasy. Her internal thoughts were telling her that something was wrong, that something happened to Ryo, but she had to ignore these thoughts. Usually her own problems and insecurities wouldn't bother her at work, but if it involved anyone else (especially one of her friends), it would slowly eat away at her, especially knowing that she couldn't check her phone until break. Although, her phone had yet to go off..

_Bzzt._

Ah, there it is. 

Shizuku's stomach dropped. But, she tried to shake it off. It could just be dad again.. She thought, but then her phone went off again. This continued for another half-hour, until Shizuku was done for the day at 12. Without saying anything, she ran outside of the café and started walking down the street, pulling her phone out. Looking down, she noticed that Seika was calling her. But, she didn't react right away, rather just feeling the vibration from the phone on her hand. Quickly, she snapped out of the trance she was in, answering the phone.

"Hello-" 

"Shizuku! W-we've been trying to call you all morning.. Where have you been?!"

Shizuku froze. 

"What? I-I've been at work all morning.. Seika, what's going on?"

Even Shizuku couldn't mask the shakiness in her voice. 

"Didn't you hear? Ayaka and Ikumi already tried to call you.. They told me to call you as a last resort.. I-I'm calling to tell you that Ryo is-"

The cell phone fell out of Shizuku's hand. Her worst thoughts had been confirmed. 

A moment passed, before a silent sob came from Shizuku.

Ryo is _dead._

Shizuku sunk to her knees as tears rolled down her face. Her vision became cloudy, but she didn't care. Nothing in that moment mattered besides the pain and agony she felt. She slammed her fist into the pavement, once, twice, three times, until her fist began to bleed. The tears didn't stop when the blood came, rather they multiplied, dripping onto the pavement below. 

Another person she knew was dead.

Another person she cared dearly about was dead.

Dead. _Gone._

The emotions felt by Shizuku were similar to the ones felt the day she made her contract to become a magical girl. Sadness. Agony. Despair. Pain. Everything blended together into a disgusting sensation that settled into Shizuku's stomach. An ill feeling came upon her, but she was crying too much to care. Everything _hurt._

How many more people are going to die?

Ryo was strong, one of the strongest people Shizuku knew. Ryo was one of the only people Shizuku allowed herself to be vulnerable around, she was always so reliable and easy to talk to..

Ryo wasn't supposed to be the first to go. 

Shizuku's other fist slammed into the pavement, but only once. Her body ached, a pleading sign from her body to stop, and finally she did stop. But the tears wouldn't comply so easily. A dull, throbbing pain settled in the back of her head. It hurts.

_Today was supposed to be a good day._

A voice called out to her in the distance, but Shizuku didn't care to look up. Rather, she was preoccupied with the emotions that had suddenly taken over. She hadn't cried this hard in a long time. Most of the time, Shizuku was able to keep her negative emotions bottled up inside of her, hiding them from others. But, she was learning to become vulnerable around those who she was close with. It was a slow process, but she was making progress.

Ryo was one of those people. 

Suddenly, a gentle hand was placed on her shoulder. Shizuku flinched, despite the touch being so gentle. She wiped the tears away from her eyes, glancing up to see who it was. Seika stood above her, a worried look on her face. 

Seika was another one of those people. But she'd never seen Shizuku so vulnerable before. This was a first.

Seika wasn't close with Ryo, but upon receiving a call from Ayaka, she understood the situation and knew she needed to be there for both of them. It was the least she could do, after all. 

Kneeling down, Seika gently placed her arms around Shizuku, pulling her into a gentle hug. Shizuku was stiff, but didn't reject the hug. After a moment, she put her arms around Seika, but was careful enough to make sure none of her blood got onto the other girl. Upon feeling the warmth that Seika provided, Shizuku began to sob once again. She didn't realize just how much she needed comfort in that moment. 

"I-I'm here, I'm here.." Seika gently said, leaning into the hug. This was the least she could do. "Ayaka is with Ikumi, b-but they'll be here soon.." 

Shizuku nodded her head, closing her eyes. The realization that she was allowing herself to be so vulnerable around Seika hadn't set in yet, but that didn't matter. All Shizuku wanted to do was curl up in bed and sob until she passed out from exhaustion. She tried to speak to Seika, but no words would come out. Seika understood this though, and decided to tighten the hug in place of verbal communication. Even if she wasn't close to Ryo, Seika knew she needed to try her best to comfort one of her friends. The pair stayed close together while they waited for Ikumi and Ayaka to show up. 

Today wasn't a good day.


End file.
